Specking



(No Model.)

C. C. WBBBER.

v SPBUKING, BURLING, AND KNOBBING TABLE; N0. 377,655. Y' l Patented Feb. '7, 1888.

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UNITED STATES PATENT" rrrcE.

SPECKING, BURLING, AND KNOBBIN G TABLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 377,655, dated February 7, 1888.

I Application filed October 6, 1886. Serial No. 215,444. (No model.)

5 Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Mechanical Specking, Burling, and Knobbing Tables, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part thereof.

In the manufacture of textile fabrics it is customary to subject the fabric to three oper# knobbing,77 and specking77 or dotting,77 respectively. In performing them the operator sits before a table or bench having its top inclined at a convenient angle, and upon this table the fabric is placed, it being drawn over the inclined surface from time to time as the Work progresses into the operators lap, and ultimately to the door. The rst operation, burling, is performed directly after the cloth comes from the loom 5 and it consists in pulling out double threads, repairing snarls, picking off loose threads, and .in detecting and curing any other defects resulting from imperfect weaving. lThe second, knobbing, is performed immediately before the cloth is sheared, and consists in removing all knobs or bunches that would cause the shears to penetrate the body of thefabric. The third operation, specking, consists in removingspecksfand burrs or any other substances that would injure the appearance of the cloth when finished. As each of these operations must be performed `upon that portion of the inclined table Within easy reach and sight of the operator, it is necessary when the cloth is of considerable width to have two operators at each table, and this results in great inconvenience, for it is generally found that one operator will work more rapidly than the'other, or that one side of the fabric will be comparatively free from imperfections, and thus one operator will be obliged to suspend work until the other completes her side of the fabric.

It is the object of my invention to provide a table which will be free from these objections by enabling asingle operatorl to perform the previous steps in the manufacture thereof. These operations are known as burling',.

either of said operations upon fabric of any i width, and which will relieve the operator from the labor and loss of timeincident to the manipulation of the fabricas the operation proceeds.

To this end my invention consists in the ta'- ble constructed as hereinafter fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, in which like letters idicate like parts in all the figures, Figure 1 is a front view of my improved table and its operating mechanism. Fig. 2 is an end view, and Fig. 3 is a plan view,thereof. Fig. 4 is an enlarged view, partly in section and-partlyin elevation, of part of the driving mechanism; and Figs. 5, 6, and 7 are views in detail of partsv of the operating mechanism, to be hereinafter referred to.

A A indicate a frame which supports the' table proper, D, and the mechanism for automatically moving the fabric thereover. The frame and the parts carried thereby are in tended to be moved back and forth over the licor and in front of the operator, and for this purpose the frame is provided with a roller mounted in the end of each of its four legs, and the door is provided with a track upon which these rollers run. I prefer to make theserollers n with grooved perpheries, as shown, and the track lVI with convex Surface; but this construction is not essential, the function of the rollers and track being vsimply t0 insure an easy movement of the frame over a given surface of the door.

Upon the upper part of the frame, supported in any suitable manner, is the shelf B, upon which the fabric, C, to be operated upon is supported. rIhe tableD is hinged to the frame at the side next the operator, and is provided with means for retaining it at a convenient angle of inclination,those I have shown the table at each end of the frame upon the shaft ofthe roller F, which I will term the presserroll,77 and which is mounted to revolve freely in bearings m, projecting from the frame. This presser-roll extends the full length of the roo frame, as shown in Fig. l, and mounted in,Y

bearings at the front and rear of the frame, respectively, are similar rollers, G H. The rollers G H are connected by an endless apron or belt, I, extending throughout their length. Movement imparted to roller H,therefore,will be communicated to roller G, and through the latter to the presser-roll F, the bearings m being slotted vertically to permit the presserroll to rest by gravity upon the roller G.

The roller H has mounted upon its axis h, at each end, a loose pull-ey, X and X', one of which is shown enlarged in Figs. 6 and 7, and both of which are shown in diagram in Fig. 5, with the body of the shaft omitted. Also mounted upon the axis h in such a manner as to turn therewith are ratchet-wheels h'- one at each end of the shaft and just outside the pulleys X X-the teeth of said ratchetwheels projecting in the same direction. Pawls w are pivoted to the sides of the pulleys X X' in position to co-operate with the teeth of the ratchet-wheels and revolve the shaft H when either of said pulleys is revolved about the axis .h in one direction and to ride over said teeth when the pulleys revolve in the opposite direction. I prefer to use fiat linked chains as belts, and have therefore shown the pulleys X X as sprocket-wheels, but do not wish to limit myself to such construction.

I will now proceed to describe the mechanism for automatically imparting intermittent movement to said pulleys and roller H.

Secured to thelower part of the frame at the ends are two supports, L, extending beyond the rear side of the frame a short distance. The inner side of these projecting ends is recessed, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3 and in full lines in Fig. l. These recesses form Ways Z,within which travel rollers j of a carriage, J, two at each end thereof. To insure accuracy of movement,l prefer to make theseways in the form of racks and the rollers with cogs to mesh therewith, as shown in the drawings. The carriage J is intermittently moved in opposite directions by means presently to be described, and has a shelf-like top, which receives the fabric after being operated upon, the fabric .being deposited thereon in regular folds by reason of the said intermittent movement. y

To each end of the carriage J is secured a bar, Y Y', projecting beyond the side of the carriage toward and beneath the frame. To these bars are secured the ends of two belts, preferably in the form of flat linked chains e and f. rlhe ends of belt e are secured to the opposite ends of bar Y, while the ends of belt f are secured to the' inner end of bar Y', as shown. Belt e passes between two pulleys, a b, secured to one of the rear standards of the frame, and thence over the loose pulley X at one end 0f the shaft H. Beltf passes around two pulleys, c d, the former being secured to the front standard of the frame at the opposite end and the latter to the corresponding rear standard, and thence passes around loose pulley X at the opposite end of shaft H. It

follows from this arrangement of the belts ef and pulleys a b c d that movement of the carriage J in either direction will revolve shaft H through the loose pulleys, pawls, and ratchetwheels, previously described, in one and the same direction, one pawl traveling backward over the teeth of its ratchet-wheel, while the other, meshing with a tooth of its wheel, revolves the shaft about its axis. The driving mechanism for producing this back-and-forth movement of the carriage J is constructed as follows: The carriage J has in its under side a recess in the form of a parallelogram extending lengthwise thereof, and in this recess is located a rack, Z, having the same general outline. The sides of the recess serve as a guide to Aretain the teeth of a pinion, O, in mesh with the teeth of the rack. The pinion O is keyed to a hollow shaft, o2, (see Fig. 4,) so as to revolve therewith, and also keyed to the said shaft, preferably beneath the floor N, is a friction-wheel, P, having a friction-surface, p, on its lower side.

The shaft o2 is mounted in a suitable bearing, W, and oil-ducts 0 and o' are provided for properly lubricating said shaft both outside and inside. A short shaft, q, has a bearing at its upper end within the hollow shaft o'l in such manner as to both freely revolve and move endwise therein, and at its lower end is stepped on the leverS, as clearly shown in Fig. 4. This shaft q carries the band-wheel Q, by which, by means of band R, power is transmitted from any suitable motor. The lever S at its rear end is pivoted to a hanger, T, preferably depending from the floor, as shown, and at its front end is connected to a rod, U, passing up through the floor, and there connected to the heel of a pedal, V, so located as to be convenient to the foot of the operator as she sits in front of the table D.

From this construction it follows that by elevating and depressing the continuously-revolving wheel Q into and out of contact with the friction-wheel I by means of lever S, rod U, and pedal V the operator has at all times the operating mechanism under instant con trol.4

It will be observed that when the pinion O is traveling along either of the long sides of the rack Z the table and all the operating mechanism carried by the frame are moved over the door upon the track M in one or the other direction, the carriage J having no transverse movement upon the supports L. Vhen, however, the pinion turns from one of the long sides of the rack and begins to travel along either end thereof, the movement of the frame over the track ceases andthe carriage J beginsits short transverse movementin one or the other direction, it in its turn imparting movement to the roller H, as before described. These alternating movements continue, of course, as long as the band-wheel Q. is held in contact with friction-Wheel P.

` The operation of the construction described is as follows: The cloth, C, is placed upon IOO IIO v the shelf B, as shown in Fig. 2, and the oper-v ator seats herself before the table D, with her vfoot resting upon pedal V. The end of the cloth is brought over the table and down to the bottom of its inclined face, where it is in a position to be operated on. For convenience, we will consider that'the operation upon the first breadth of cloth thus drawn over the .table has been completed and that the pinion O is at the point indicated by dotted lines ih Fig. 3. The operator now introduces the extreme end of the cloth between the presser-roll F and roller G and presses upon the front end of pedal V, thus raising its heel, and, through rod U, lever S,y and band-wheel Q, sets in motion friction-wheel P and pinion O, the latter turning in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 3. The pinion in traveling from the point l to the point 2 on the rack will move the carriage J toward and beneath the frame, the latter being stationary upon its track M. This movement of the carriage through chainf, pulleys c, d, and X', and the pawl and ratchet at that end of shaft H moves the latter to draw the fabricin the direction of the arrows in Fig. l by means of the endless belt or apron I. A new breadth of fabric is thus drawn over the table, and the pinion O, turning the corner at 2 and traveling from 2 to 3 on the rack, moves the frame on its track from left to right before the operator, thus bringing the whole surface of the new breadth of fabric directly before her,what ever its width may be. The pinion,having arrived at the point 3, again brings the carriage J into operation, moving it away from the frame, the latter again becoming stationary. This movement of the carriage through chain e, pulleys a, b, and'X, pawl x, and ratchet h again i mparts movement to roller H and brings another breadth of the fabric down overthe table, and as the pinion travels from the point 4 to its original position atl this new breadth of fabric is passed before the operator from right to left, this operation beingl continued until the whole piece of fabric has been thus drawn over the table and operated upon.

Should the condition of the fabric at any point vnecessitate a stoppage of its movement in order to enable the operator to curethe defeet, she can 'stop it instantly by removing the foot from the treadle, and as readily set it in motion again. The strip of fabric, after passing over roller H, descends upon the carriage J, and by .thc backand-forth movement of the latter is laidin folds, as shown in Fig. 2, ready to be removed when the operation is completed, without liability of being soiled by contact with the floor.

It is qbvious that various modifications of the construction shown and described could be made without departing from the spirit of my invention. For instance, the engagement of the pinion O with the rack Z could be secured by friction instead of by positive teeth, and other equivalent means for connecting and disconnecting the motive power with and from the pinion shaft could be employed, it being essential merely that such means shall be at all times subject to t-he instant control of the operator.

It is also obvious that the driving mechanism could be located above the floor-as, for instance, by placing the track M upon a raised platform but I prefer the arrangement' shown and described, because of the greater economy of space.

I claim- 1. Aspecking, burling, and knobbing table and a supporting-frame therefor, in combination with drawing-rolls for moving a strip of fabric over said table, and means, as the lrack and pinion shown and described, for moving said supporting-frame in a direction transverse to the line of movement of the fabric over the table, substantially as described.

2. The table, its supporting-frame, atrack upon which said frame is adapted to travel, a transversely-movable carriage mounted upon ways in said frame; an endless belt carried by two rolls, one of which is provided at each end with a ratchet-wheel and a loose pulley carrying apawl, belts connecting each endof the carriage with one of said loose pulleys said belts being guided by pulleys mounted upon the frame and arranged substantially as shown, a rack constructed in the form of a parallelogram connected with said carriage, and a pinion adapted by its engagement with said rack lto impart bodily movement to the frame and transversemovement to the carriage, combined and operating substantially asset forth.

3. The table, its supporting-frame mounted upon a track, a series of rolls and connecting-belt adapted to draw a strip of fabric across the face of the table, one of said rolls being provided at each end with a ratchetwheel and loose pulley carrying a pawl, a

carriage mounted to have transverse move- IOO IIO

ment upon said frame, belts connecting each end of said carriage with one of said loose pulleys, one of said belts passing between two guiding-pulleys mounted upon one of the frame-standards, and the other passing around two 4guiding-pulleys located, respectively,

Irs"

upon the front and rear frame-standards atthe opposite end ofthe frame, a rack in the iorm of a parallelogram secured to said carriage, a pinion in engagement with said rack, driving mechanism for said pinion, and means, substantially as shown and described, whereby said driving mechanism can be readily thrownf into and out of engagement with said pinion,

'combinedand operati-ng substantially asde- ISO adapted by its engagement with said rack to impart bodily movement to said frame, its hollow shaft o2, friction-wheel P,keyed to said hollow shaft, driving-pulley Q, lever S, supporting the shaft q at its lower end, rod U,a.nd pedal V, su bstantially as shown and described.

CHARLES C. WEBBER.

Witnesses:

H. K. HAWEs, W. H. CHAPMAN.

shaft, shaft q, having a bearing within said r 5 

